Rick Perry faces big veto questions on education bills

Does the governor veto a batch of education bills that will reverse the state’s longstanding efforts to measure students and schools as well as raise education standards? Does he veto them selectively? Or does he veto them not at all?

For a number of policy reasons, he should veto HB 5, HB 866 and HB 2824. Those are the most important education bills coming to his desk. You can read more why these bills are not best for Texas here and here and here.

Being the politician that he is, my hunch is Perry does not veto HB 5 outright. It is the main anti-testing bill. And it is the one that has passionate support from suburban parents. They also are key voters, and I just do not see him crossing them broadly on such a visceral issue.

But he could veto HB 5 on narrow grounds, such as requiring legislators to revisit in special session the type of tests HB 5 reduces. In other words, he could send it back with guidelines for requiring fewer tests but making sure those few tests include state exams in Algebra II and English III. He also could send it back and say before we give students too many options for taking applied math and science courses in high school, which HB 5 would allow, let’s make sure that Texas has the best type of applied math and science courses in the nation.

A veto like that could help quite a bit. On the testing front, for example, HB 5 does not require end-of-course tests in Algebra II and English III. They are important because they are seen as good predictors of a student’s readiness to do college work.

HB 866 and HB 2824 are different matters. Perry has plenty of room to veto them outright.

HB 866 would require the governor to ask Washington for a waiver from testing in reading in math in grades three through eight. Testing in those grades is the backbone of No Child Left Behind. Despite that law’s bad press, the Obama administration has never let up on testing those subjects in those grades.

And why should states let up on testing students in reading and math in those grades?

Don’t most parents want to know whether their kids are advancing in reading and math year over year? That includes their high-achieving children, who the exemptions in HB 866 would be aimed at in grades three through eight. (A New York Times story today talks about how young students may have more of a knack for math, but a good number struggle to get ahead in reading.)

The worry about HB 2824 is that the bill purports to exempt high performing districts from some tests. But not all the 20-odd high performing districts seeking exemptions are high performing.

Some districts had well below half of their high school students scoring at the college ready level on the last TAKS exam for English and math. That was the last official testing data from the state and it makes you wonder why the state should exempt districts from some tests when their high school students are not learning in a way that shows they are ready for college.

And, yes, we should hope that most kids shoot for college. There is quite a bit of push-back about getting kids ready for college. But this Dallas Morning News article explains — once again — why kids with college degrees are much more likely to survive tough economic times.

Perry has plenty of good reasons to take out his veto pen for these last two bills. It wouldn’t surprise me if he does. And, if he’s smart, he will veto HB 5 on narrow grounds. That way, he can compromise with those who want to change testing and still preserve academic rigor.

We will find out soon. The governor’s deadline for vetoing bills is June 16. Stay tuned.

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